Let Me Fall
by Sure on this Shining Night
Summary: Aubrey, a somewhat reclusive and reserved Ravenclaw has always prided herself on her ability to stay out of trouble…that was until trouble found her. Now going into her fifth year, Aubrey finds herself in the thick of things whether she wants to be or not.
1. Chapter 1

**Let Me Fall**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. **

Fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes was all the time I was given to pack my trunk of all my belongings. Something had my mother running scared and I think it had something to do with the unexpected visitor who showed up on our doorstep earlier. I had no idea what he said to my mother or the purpose for his call; but after he had left, she frantically used the Floo Network to contact my father at work. My father worked in the Auror department at the Ministry of Magic closely with his partner Kingsley Shacklebolt to track down notorious mass-murderer Sirius Black. After nearly an hour at the Ministry, my mother returned to our home with my father and Auror Shacklebolt. All three of them wore solemn expressions on their faces which puzzled me. Never in my life had I ever seen my parents looking so somber or scared. Whatever was going on; it had to be serious.

Mother ordered my brothers and I to go upstairs and pack our trunks quickly because we needed to leave. She didn't give us any specifics like where we were going or how long we'd be away; but she did insist that two of my brothers and I pack our school things in our trunks. So the only thing I could determine was that this was probably going to be somewhat long-term seeing as school didn't start until September and it was the beginning of July. Where could we possibly be going for two months? It better at least be some place tropical with a nice ocean view; but somehow I doubted that things were going to work out that way. I carelessly shoved my blue and bronze striped school tie into my trunk when my mother called for us from downstairs.

"Elliot! Aubrey! Connor! Oliver!"

"Coming," I called.

"Liar, you're not even close to being ready," a voice said from behind me.

I turned around to see my older brother Elliot standing in my doorway, leaning against its frame. Elliot was seventeen with dark shaggy hair that nearly covered his blue eyes. He was also the sibling I was probably closest with. We just seemed to share an unknown connection. Don't get me wrong, I love my other brothers; but there was just something special about my relationship with my older brother. Leaving his trunk in the hall, he took a few more steps into my bedroom with his arms defensively folded across his chest.

"She can hardly expect me to be ready in fifteen minutes," I said as I started to shove my favorite outfits from my hamper into my trunk.

"I'm ready," Elliot shrugged.

"But you live out of your trunk on holiday. I actually take the time to unpack," I retorted.

Elliot held his hands up in defense as I continued to shove clothes in my trunk.

"Do you know where we're going?" I asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Elliot said. "You think they'd tell me though. I am of age, after all."

"They're just trying to protect us," I said. "They're our parents; it's their job."

"I know that; but it doesn't mean it's fair," Elliot said shaking his head. "I can hold my own."

I nodded my head in agreement. I didn't voice my opinion to him. It wasn't that they didn't think he couldn't; it was probably more that they didn't want him to have to, especially after what had happened last year. It seemed like no one was safe if the rumors surrounding Cedric Diggory's death were true. Last year, Harry Potter appeared outside the maze with Cedric's dead body. The Boy-Who-Lived, claimed that Lord Voldemort was back and was responsible for Cedric's death; but _The Daily Prophet_ appeared to think otherwise. I didn't really know Harry Potter, other than the fact that he often managed to get himself in some sticky situations. Most of what I knew of Harry Potter came from the Hogwarts rumor mill, not that I really cared. I mostly kept to myself or with stuck tightly to my older brother when at Hogwarts where I was often labeled the quiet girl; but those few who managed to get through my shell knew otherwise. I tried to slam my trunk, but it just popped back open because it was over-stuffed. I struggled once more to try and close my trunk before my older brother pushed me out of his way so that he could shut it. I couldn't help but chuckled when even Elliot failed to shut it; until he gave me a look of annoyance. I jumped onto my bed and then plopped my bottom onto my trunk so that he could latch it. He did so with ease before I patted him on the shoulder with thanks.

"Mummy says that you two need to hurry up," my younger brother Oliver said poking his head into my room.

Oliver had sandy blonde hair similar to both our mother and our father and would be an ickle firstie at Hogwarts this upcoming school year. I stuck my tongue out at my brother and jumped off my bed to chase after him; but he darted down the hall and down the stairs. Little brothers…sometimes they could be bloody annoying; but the same could probably be said for older ones too. I turned around to see Elliot looking out my bedroom window.

"I've never see her like this," Elliot said. "Hell, we've never even taken a bloody vacation longer than a week."

"She never specified how long we'd be gone," I said playing devil's advocate.

"You know as well as I do that this is different," Elliot whispered. "We're leaving the only place we've ever known to be home on a sudden whim."

"Maybe Gran is sick?" I suggested.

"Are you really that naïve?" Elliot questioned.

"Did you see who was at the door earlier today?" I said, answering his question with a question of my own.

"No, did you?" Elliot asked.

"Yes," I whispered.

"Who was it?" Elliot furthered his eyes wide in surprise.

"Elliot and Aubrey!" my mother called.

I looked to Elliot and without speaking I walked over to my bed to attempt to haul my trunk on my own; but my brother intercepted me and placed his hand on my arm.

"Aubrey, who was it?" Elliot asked again.

"Lucius Malfoy," I whispered.

"Are you certain it was him?" Elliot questioned.

"I know who Lucius Malfoy is, Elliot," I hissed.

"Sorry, but this doesn't make sense. What would Mum have to do with Lucius Malfoy?" Elliot pondered aloud.

"I—I don't know," I said. "But we really should get downstairs."

Elliot sighed. I knew that he wasn't going to just drop this. Knowing Elliot, he was going to dig until he got to the bottom or this, no matter what the outcome may be. I just hoped that maybe we both were wrong about this bad feeling we had. Elliot drew his wand from his back pocket and pointed it at my trunk and levitated it. I smiled because he knew that I had probably packed it much heavier than I could manage. I reached for my book bag and slung it around my shoulder before I followed behind my brother down the corridor. When we got downstairs, we found our parents waiting rather impatiently with Auror Shacklebolt and our younger brothers. Elliot set both our trunks on the floor before he straightened his shoulders and looked to our parents.

"Where are we going?" Elliot asked sternly.

"You'll find out when we're there," Mum answered.

"I'm of age; I don't have to go," Elliot argued.

"You are coming and that is final," Mum retorted.

"Why? Why do we have to leave?" Elliot furthered.

"Apologize to your mother for talking to her like that," Dad interrupted.

"I'm not a child anymore. You don't need to hide things from me," Elliot continued to argue.

"Elliot, I promise I will tell you one day; but right now we need to leave for our safety," Mum begged.

"El, don't be stupid," I groaned.

"Fine," Elliot muttered.

I could see my mother reach for my brother but he brushed off any attempts of her affection. He took a few steps closer toward my father, whom he now stood taller than. I had always considered my father to be somewhat tall, but Elliot had even outgrown him. Auror Shacklebolt then began to give out the instructions. We were going to be side-along apparating. I would be going with my father, Kingsley would be taking Elliot, and my mother would be taking Connor and Oliver. I waited for my brother to protest; but he didn't. While Kingsley began to explain a little about side-along apparating to those of us who hadn't yet, my father shrunk all out trunks and put them in his trouser's pocket. I walked over to where my father stood and reached for his hand. While I had never apparated before, I understood the basic concepts because I had helped Elliot study for his test. He had passed it with flying-colors on his first try, something which both my parents had been proud of. Dad never failed to remind us of his test which left him with a bald spot on his head that led to his failure of the test. My father tightly gripped my hand as I looked around the room to my siblings. Elliot still wore a sour expression on his face, Connor seemed rather excited to be leaving, and Oliver's expression looked somewhat apprehensive. I wasn't sure what to think about the situation. I didn't have enough information to assess what was going on; but I just hoped that the bad feeling in my stomach would soon go away.

"Just hold tight," my father said.

I nodded my head in response as I clutched his hand probably a little tighter than was necessary and I closed my eyes, preparing for the sensation of being sucked down a tube my brother had often described. I could feel my breathing begin to become more ragged when that sensation finally came. It felt like I was being squeezed in a tight rubber tube but I kept my eyes shut. I often got motion sickness and I could just feel the vomit beginning to form in my throat. When we finally touched the pavement I hunched myself over and vomited. I was just thankful I wasn't the only one. I could hear my younger brothers doing the same. This was normal, or so they said. Unlike my first time on a broom when I vomited after I got off. I could feel my face beginning to flush at the memory and embarrassment. At least this time I wasn't the only one. I wiped at my mouth when I was ready to stand upright again; but I leaned heavily against my father because my head was still spinning and my ears were ringing. After this, I didn't understand what the big hype of being able to apparate was about; but I suppose it was some rite of passage thing…one I wasn't sure I wanted to take part in some day. When I finally wasn't feeling the after-effects of apparating, I looked around at our surroundings. We were in some dark alley but I could see a Muggle street light flickering in the distance.

"Is this it?" Connor asked.

"Just a little farther," Kingsley spoke. "The rest of the trip is on foot."

Kingsley inched down the alley before he checked to see if the coast was clear to move.

"Try to…blend in," Kingsley spoke.

I still clung tightly to my father as we rounded the corner and merged into the slight Muggle traffic on the walkway. We did get some odd looks from those passing by; but for the most part we were ignored by them. I turned around to see Elliot trying to pass my father and I, so that he was closest behind Auror Shacklebolt. Sometimes it seemed that he was trying too hard to prove himself. As for me, I was perfectly content to be a child. I was in no rush to prove myself. We continued our walk silently. I wasn't sure if it was for our safety or because no one knew what to say. Either way, it was silent until Kingsley abruptly stopped us. We turned to look at the row houses before us.

"Where's number twelve?" Oliver asked.

"Sh!" Mum shushed.

"Pass this around and memorize it," Kingsley said solemnly.

Kingsley passed a piece of parchment to Elliot who passed it to my father who passed it to me. I looked down at the parchment in my hand. It read: _The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London._ London, we're in London? What was so special about London and what was this Order of the Phoenix? I passed the parchment over to my brother Connor before I looked up. I was rather confused; but thankfully, Connor spoke for me.

"I don't get it," Connor said.

"Think of what you just read," my father said.

The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix…number twelve, Grimmauld Place…London. I focused on those words and looked up once more. Suddenly, it seemed as if the buildings in front of us began to move. The Muggles seemed unaffected by what we could see as before our very eyes appeared number twelve…of what I assumed was Grimmauld Place. I could hear my younger brothers' muttering "how cool" that was and their sheer awe of the building appearing out of nowhere. I on the other hand knew that the house had to be under the Fidelius Charm with someone serving as Secret Keeper; but she chose not to say anything to her brothers. She knew what it was like to have to suffer through know-it-alls at Hogwarts and didn't want to act that way toward her brothers. No, she was more than content to know that she was right and not flaunt her intelligence.

"This is where I leave you," Kingsley spoke. "You should be safe here."

My mother and father thanked Kingsley before he shook hands with my father. Dad must be taking the rest of the day off from work if he wasn't returning with Kingsley. I still wasn't sure what was so bloody important that would cause us to relocate to someplace in London; but as a fifteen year old, I didn't really have a choice in the matter. Elliot led our family up the stairs and before he opened the door, Dad warned us all not to touch anything or go too far into the place. I followed behind Elliot into the house which appeared to be very old fashioned. It had gas lamps on the wall that spluttered light into the hall, peeling wallpaper, and countless cobwebs. So, this was the Order of the Phoenix…whatever that was. I heard Dad close the door behind us when footsteps came down the hall closer to us. My eyes widened at the person drawing closer toward us and the panic began to build within me. I looked to my father who simply stood there. Why wasn't he drawing his wand? Wasn't he going to protect us from notorious mass-murderer Sirius Black?

_**Author's Note:**__**So what do you think so far?**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

With a panicked expression on my face, I turned once more to face the man in the hall as I slowly began to back away. The man's face looked somewhat gaunt and pale; but he looked healthier than he had in all the wanted posters.

"Sirius Black!" I whispered.

Elliot grabbed me by my arm and pulled me closer to him before he reached for his wand in the back pocket. He left it concealed, just in case the man made a move. But instead of lunging at us like I'd expect a lunatic to do, he began to converse with us rather calmly.

"And you must be…" Sirius began.

"My daughter Aubrey," my father answered for me. "This is my wife Nancy and my sons Elliot, Connor, and Oliver."

"I would say that it's a pleasure to have you lot in my home; but given your circumstances and the state of disrepair of my so called house, I'll refrain," Sirius said.

"How can you be acting like this? Don't you know who he is!" Elliot hissed.

"I already told you who I was," Sirius shrugged.

"But he's…" I began.

"The mass-murdering thing is a bit of a misunderstanding," Sirius said.

"A misunderstanding? How is murder a misunderstanding?" Elliot furthered.

"Dumbledore trusts him, El, so do I; and that should be enough for you," Dad said.

"And if it isn't?" Elliot questioned.

Elliot stood toe to toe with my father, standing taller than him. Looking at them, you would probably never even tell that they were related.

"Elliot, lose the attitude," my mother reprimanded.

Elliot rolled his eyes as a certain silence overtook our group; but I could hear footsteps from upstairs. I looked upward only to see the ceiling overhead covered in cobwebs. In the corner of my eye, I saw Sirius Black look at me before I quickly cast my glance to the floor. I definitely didn't know how to feel about living in the house of notorious mass-murderer, Sirius Black…even if the man claimed that the whole thing was a misunderstanding. How can being incarcerated for murder in Azkaban be a misunderstanding? Besides, if it was; shouldn't the man be cleared by now? But for some reason, my mother and father trusted him. I didn't know why; but they did. So, I suppose the man at least deserved my unbiased judgment. Let me judge him for who he is now…not who he may or may not have been in the past. The only problem with that was that it was easier said than done. I mean, I had only known Sirius Black to be the man who had betrayed the Potter family. Granted, I didn't really care to know much more than that…but still, first impressions were hard to shake. I could see Elliot narrowing his eyes at Sirius but my younger brothers only seemed to look at the man with wide eyes. They seemed to be almost fascinated by the man standing before us. I felt like I was the only one conflicted about seeing him.

"Well—erm…" Sirius began by breaking the silence. "I suppose you'll want to see where you'll be staying. I'll get Molly to show you since she's got everything figured out."

I looked back to my mother who nodded for me to follow the somewhat haggard looking man. I saw my father push Elliot to move forward which caused him to jerk forward and step on my foot. I yelped in surprise more than pain. I fell backward hard against the wall, which caused dust to fill the hall. Sirius Black quickly rushed over to me and yanked on my arm to get me away from the wall. With my eyes wide at him, he explained that he hadn't been in this house in years and that he wasn't sure what it was home to. While I couldn't possible imagine what could be dangerous about a wall, I simply nodded my head in agreement. I brushed my shoulder off of the dust that had smeared to my shirt when I could hear the footsteps once more. I looked up as a voice echoed from the end of the hall.

"Are they here?" a woman called.

"I'm in the hall with them!" Sirius yelled back.

Suddenly, there seemed to be a roar of footsteps pounding from the end of the hall. As the sound drew closer, the figure of a plump, somewhat frumpy, ginger-haired woman began to become more visible. While there were many students with ginger hair at Hogwarts, there was one family known for the hair color. If my guess was right I would guess that the woman was some relation to…

"I'm Molly Weasley. I'm sure you lot know Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny," the woman greeted with a smile toward us; but she turned toward Sirius with a frown. "Why didn't you tell me they were here."

"I just did," Sirius argued.

"You should have told me right when they got here," Molly Weasley continued.

Sirius muttered something under his breath as Molly turned herself once again toward our family. She smiled at us, but the smile made me slightly unnerved. While I didn't know much about the Weasley family; I knew enough to know that they had a Quidditch team's worth of children. Their twins were in the same year as Elliot and Ron was in my year; but we didn't really run in the same circles. I was the type that avoided trouble at all costs and didn't go looking for it like those Gryffindors. It seemed like every year they got into some sort of trouble and if my assumption was correct, it was probably because of Harry Potter. That boy just couldn't shake trouble. No, I was far safer away from them…or at least, I had been.

"I'll show you to your rooms," Mrs. Weasley said. "My children should be tidying up where you'll be staying. Things might be a little tight; but we'll make do; always do."

"Thank you for preparing for us on such short notice," my mother said.

"Not a trouble at all," Mrs. Weasley answered. "I just hope they actually did as I told them."

"That's having children for you," Dad joked.

Mrs. Weasley motioned for us to follow her up the stairs. I was the first one to follow after her and right behind me was Connor and Oliver. Mum and Dad were next and Elliot brought up the rear with a rather sour expression on his face. As I followed Mrs. Weasley up the stairs, I came across a rather hideous sight: house-elf heads mounted on the wall. Connor reached to touch one of them when Mum slapped at his hand.

"What don't you understand about don't touch anything?" Mum hissed.

"Sorry," Connor muttered.

"Don't do it again," Mum said.

We continued to follow Mrs. Weasely up the stairs until we were on the second floor of the home. She pointed to a door and told us that was the room where she and her husband would be staying and the room next to it was occupied by her son, Ron. I didn't really know much about Ron Weasley other than the fact that he was Harry Potter's constant companion and after what happened last year, the Ravenclaws didn't really mix with Harry Potter after he took away the glory from Cedric Diggory being chosen as the Hogwarts champion. Not that being a champion did the bloke any good, considering if what Potter had said was true…that Lord Voldemort was back again.

"I figured the younger two could stay in here for now," Mrs. Weasley said.

"Connor, Oliver," Mum said.

Mrs. Weasley twisted the doorknob which opened the door to reveal a teenage boy lounging on a bed in a disheveled room. Clothes were scattered across the room and the blankets were thrown from the beds. Mum was about to lead Connor and Oliver inside, when Mrs. Weasley intercepted them and stomped into the room.

"Ronald Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley hissed. "What did I tell you about cleaning this mess up?"

"Mum," Ron groaned. "This isn't technically my room so…"

"I don't care whose room is technically is Ronald Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley furthered. "You clean this up now so that our guests have a place to say or…"

"I'm going, I'm going…" Ron muttered.

"Don't make me stand here and watch you," Mrs. Weasley threatened.

"I said that I'm going," Ron said.

Ron slowly sat up before he placed his feet on the floor. He looked out the door and looked straight at me with a puzzled look on his face. I could tell that he thought I looked familiar; but I knew that he had no idea who I was. So, I awkwardly waved at him which caused him to blink several times before he reached for a shirt that was tossed on the floor. Mrs. Weasley muttered something under her breath before she allowed Mum, Connor, and Oliver entrance into the room. Mum promised to keep an eye on Ron before Mrs. Weasley threatened her son once more. Then, as if the predicament with Ron had never happened, she smiled at us and led the rest of us up another flight of stairs. She pointed to the first door and told Dad that he and my mum would be staying in that room. Dad nodded before he took our trunks out of his pocket. He returned them to normal size before he headed downstairs to bring Connor and Oliver their trunks, leaving only Elliot and I with Mrs. Weasley.

"Elliot, is it?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Yes ma'am," Elliot said.

"You'll be bunking with the twins," Mrs. Weasley said. "From what I understand you're in the same year as them."

"Yes ma'am; but I wouldn't call us friends or anything," Elliot added.

Mrs. Weasley looked unsure of how she was supposed to respond to Elliot's words, so she opened the door. The older woman peeked her head inside the room and shrugged. Elliot and I followed Mrs. Weasley into the room. It was empty. Clean; but empty. Mrs .Weasley commented that she was pleasantly surprised to see it so clean; but she also had her doubts knowing her twin boys. Suddenly, there were two loud pops and two ginger boys appeared in the room. I had more contact with Ron Weasley than the others because we had classes together; I immediately knew that these boys were the twins. Mrs. Weasley fussed about them having to use their wands for everything now that they were of age. The Weasley twins were notorious at Hogwarts and while I may have taken slight notice of them, I knew they never took any heed to me, until now. While I couldn't tell the twins apart, it didn't matter now because both of them were staring at me and Elliot.

"Williamson," one of them said with a nod toward my brother.

"And Williamson, the other said with a nod toward me.

"Weasley and Weasley," Elliot responded sullenly.

"Hey," I said whispered so quietly that they didn't hear; but I think they understood the gesture of an awkward wave.

"Looks like we're roommates," the second twin said throwing his arm around Elliot's shoulder.

"And we have some ground rules to establish," the first twin said mimicking his twin's gesture.

"If we must," Elliot muttered sarcastically.

"We must," the twins said simultaneously.

"Then I'll show you where you'll be staying, Aubrey," Mrs. Weasley said.

I nodded my head and headed for the door. Once I was at the door, I turned my head back once more to look at my brother who looked completely out of his element. Elliot wasn't really the outgoing "friends" type. He often stayed to himself, like I did…except for his best friend…who had died last year. Cedric and Elliot had been quite close despite the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff house difference and now Elliot was currently without a close confidant, so I had assumed the role. After Cedric's death, Elliot had relied heavily upon me…not that I minded. It at least provided me company; but I really did hope that he would open up to the Weasley twins or at least be open to the idea of being friends with them. From the rumors I heard about them, I think they could be just the people to cheer my brother up because clearly I wasn't doing the best job with him being so moody and all; but I suppose some would chalk that up to being a teenager.

Mrs. Weasley called my name, causing me to tear my eyes away from my brother and begin to blush. I was almost certain that I caught one of the twins catch me, so I quickly hurried away after the older woman. Mrs. Weasley chatted to me while I remained silent and politely nodded my head if she looked back at me as we walked a little further down the corridor. She stopped just outside the door and waited for me to catch up. I offered her a weak smile to which she responded by gently patting me on the arm.

"The girls are looking forward to having you," Mrs. Weasley smiled.

Girls? My look of puzzlement must have been easily read because Mrs. Weasley slightly chuckled.

"Hermione Granger will be spending the remainder of her holiday here with us. She arrived only yesterday," Mrs. Weasley answered. "Not to mention my daughter, Ginny."

I nodded my head, telling her that I understood what she was saying. I suppose I didn't know much about Hermione Granger other than the fact that she hung around with Harry Potter and she liked to somewhat flaunt her intellect. Other than that…well, I was about to find out seeing as I was going to be rooming with her indefinitely. I also didn't know much about Ginny Weasley either. I felt slightly overwhelmed by all the changes that were taking place…with all these knew people. There was nothing more that I would like to do than just keep to myself; but knowing my mother, she would keep pushing me toward these people claiming that she didn't want me to be acting anti-social. It's not that I was trying to be anti-social or anything, I just preferred to keep my own company and I suppose being able to trust people easily wasn't one of my strong-suits.

Mrs. Weasley turned the doorknob and opened the door, revealing the room. Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger immediately stood up and smiled at me. I attempted a smile; but it definitely was a forced one. Mrs. Weasley motioned for me to go in first, so I slowly walked by her and into the room. Hermione approached me first and stuck her hand out for me to shake. I looked at her oddly as she slowly withdrew her hand as I put mine out. Awkward. I began to withdraw mine when Hermione quickly grasped it and smiled.

"I'm Hermione," Hermione said.

"I know," I whispered.

"Of course you do; I just don't believe we've ever been formally introduced…" Hermione started to ramble.

"We erm—we're giving you the single bed," Ginny interrupted. "Hermione and I will share the other."

I nodded my head in thanks before I walked over to the bed that was going to be mine. Mrs. Weasley said that she was going to let us settle in and left me alone with the two Gryffindor girls. Hermione tried to talk to me about things school related; but honestly right now, I could care less about school. I wanted to know why we were here. I wanted the same answers that my brother did; only, I wasn't being a complete arse to try and get the answers I desired. I sat on the bed and looked to my new roommates who were also looking straight at me. Merlin, this was going to be awkward. At least my roommates in my Ravenclaw dormitory somewhat ignored me so that I could be alone. These girls looked as if they wanted talk to me and get to know me. I'm sure they were nice enough; but the fact was I had a terrible time letting people in. I could practically hear my mother within me saying to just take a chance and talk to them. Talking couldn't hurt anything.

"I—erm—I forgot my trunk," I muttered.

I jumped off my bed and walked straight for the door, ignoring their glances. Okay, probably not the best ice breaker…finding the first excuse to leave the room. I was going to have to come up with something better to talk to them about; but what was done was done. Besides, maybe this slight reprieve from them would give me a chance to come up with a topic of conversation that didn't involve school. But then again, going to Hogwarts was about the only thing I knew that we had in common. Merlin, why did I have to be so terrible at this? Why was it that I was a perfectly capable conversationalist with my family; yet when I'm in a new place I have nothing to say. I should have something to say. Sometimes, my family members think that I never shut up; but it was probably fear that kept me from conversing. Fear that these people just wouldn't get me. That they wouldn't get that while I'm intelligent, I'm normally very snarky and they wouldn't get my sense of humor…that they wouldn't understand anything about me. Not that my life was a complicated one by any means…well, at least there weren't any complications that I knew of; but the fact that we were on the run made me wonder otherwise. I suddenly blinked twice, noticing that I was standing directly beside my trunk. I didn't even remember getting there. I must have been so lost in my thoughts that I didn't even realize how I had gotten here…I just did. I bent over to pick up my trunk.

"I can get that for you," one of the twins said.

I could feel a blush creeping up into my cheeks. I hated this. Almost any time a bloke even talked to me it would set my cheeks aflame. I looked to him and blinked my eyes twice before I removed my hands from my trunk. I took a few steps back and continued to look at him which caused him to chuckle.

"You're quiet, aren't you?" the boy chuckled.

I simply shrugged my shoulders which caused him to laugh harder.

"Good answer," he said shaking his head.

I tried to bite my lip to stifle a laugh; but it escaped from my mouth anyway which made him smile.

"I think that's the most I've heard out of you," he smirked.

I smiled as he pointed his wand at my trunk and soon it was hovering midair.

"Thanks…" I started.

"Fred, I'm Fred," the boy grinned.

"Thanks Fred," I whispered.

He started to walk toward the room I would be staying in with me when suddenly my trunk was sent crashing to the ground. I looked to Fred confusedly who looked just as confused as I did.

"Stay away from my sister, Weasley," Elliot said protectively as he stowed his wand back in his pocket.

"Just trying to be friendly," Fred shrugged.

"Well, be less friendly when it comes to my sister," Elliot said.

"Elliot," I groaned. "Really, my trunk is too heavy for me. He was only trying to help."

I could tell that Fred was somewhat amused that I actually formed multiple sentences in front of him.

"Then, I'll get it," Elliot muttered.

Elliot pulled his wand back out of his pocket and pointed it at my trunk. I shrugged at Fred who simply shrugged back. I mouthed an apology to him as he waved it off and headed back into his room. I looked to my brother who had a scowl on his face.

"I don't want you around him," Elliot said.

"We live here. It's not like I can avoid him," I argued.

"You could at least try," Elliot furthered.

"It's not like I'd say much to him anyway," I said rolling my eyes. "Or any of them for that matter."

"You looked to be doing just fine to me," Elliot said.

"Because "thanks" is really showing off my extensive vocabulary and conversational skills," I said sarcastically.

Elliot didn't respond as he finished levitating the trunk into my room. He asked me where I wanted my trunk and I pointed to an empty spot on the floor near my bed.

"Thanks, El," I whispered.

Elliot nodded his head at me before nodding his head at the other girls in the room. He shut the door behind him, leaving me alone with the other girls. I looked to them before I immediately dropped to my knees beside my trunk. If I was going to be staying here, I should probably organize my things a little better. Besides, maybe Hermione and Ginny would get the hint that I wasn't really up to talking right now. After I started throwing items out of my trunk, they got the idea and left me alone. I breathed a sigh of relief that I had avoided an awkward conversation for now before I started to reorganize my trunk. I really did want to reorganize it, even if I was using it as my excuse.

It only took me thirty minutes to reorganize my trunk when my mother called for me to come downstairs. Apparently, it was time for dinner. I dreaded having to go downstairs; but my stomach was starving. I suppose I was just going to have to suffer through awkward conversation in order to appease my stomach. I took a deep breath before I stood up and headed for the stairs. As I reached the floor below, I could see Ron and Hermione walking down the stairs in front of me. I don't think they noticed I was right behind them because they were talking about me.

"Who are these people that are staying here? I mean it's not like we even know them," Ron said.

"Ron, Aubrey Williamson is in our year at Hogwarts," Hermione groaned.

"She is?" Ron questioned.

"She's a Ravenclaw," Hermione sighed.

"Well, then that explains why I don't know her," Ron argued.

"You do know that she sat behind you last year in Charms, right?" Hermione asked.

"Well, why would I pay attention to what's going on behind me when Professor Flitwick was right in front of me," Ron furthered.

"Because you clearly paid attention so well," Hermione scoffed.

"It's not like you can expect me to know everyone, Hermione," Ron said. "I mean, the girl hardly talks…she's some sort of freak."

Freak? He thought I was a freak? One minute he was claiming not to know me and then the next he was calling me a freak. I picked up my pace because I didn't want to be behind them and their conversation any longer. As we rounded the stairs for the final stretch I overpassed them and walked away from them as quickly as I could get away from them. Hermione gasped and Ron muttered some obscenity as I stormed by them down the corridor.

"I think she heard you," Hermione said.

You think? I could practically hear my mother in my head telling me to use my words and work this out; but right now I had no desire to do so. Right now, I just wanted to eat and get this dinner over with. The sooner this day was over, the sooner I was closer to leaving and I wouldn't have these people as my constant companion. This was exactly the reason I never put myself out there. If they were already judging me without knowing me; what would they think of me if I let them in? Sure, I was a bit of a freak; but everyone is in their own way. No, I was better off this way. I just hoped that I'd be able to go home soon because I wasn't sure how much more of this I'd be able to tolerate.

**Author's Note:** **Thanks to those of you who have read this story so far! I really appreciate it! What do you think is going to happen in this story?**

**AbominableSnowman23:** I'm glad that you like this so far! I really hope you grow to love Aubrey, because she's really growing on me! Thanks for the review! I hope you continue to enjoy it!

**WhatsTheTimeMrWolf:** Thank you! I'm glad that you like it so far and that you think I have some strong characters and some mystery. Tha's exactly what I was going for! I hope this update didn't disappoint!


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